Social Democracy, Neo-Conservatism and Hegemonic Crisis in British Columbia

Abstract

This paper adopts a Gramscian perspective in presenting a case study of hegemonic crisis and political-economic restructuring. In British Columbia, the period from 1983 through 1987 marked a decisive shift from a variant of Fordism to a neo-conservative project with strong resonances of Thatcherism. Focusing on the historical specificity of the province in the Canadian political economy and the political crises of 1983 and 1987, we explore the structural and strategic reasons for this transformation, and examine the obstacles confronting the left in its hesitant attempts to mount a successful opposition around a counter-hegemonic project.